Ezri Dax and the Seven Orphans
by Daniel Fielder
Summary: To escape her jealous step-mother, Princess Ezri finds shelter in the home of seven orphans.
1. I'm Wishing

I was inspired to do this by Jsrashad's Snow White and the Seven Peanuts project.

Disclaimer: Snow White belongs to Disney, and Star Trek belongs to Paramount, Gene Roddenberry, and JJ Abrams.

* * *

 **Ezri Dax and the Seven Orphans**

Chapter 1: I'm Wishing

Once upon a time, the queen of a humble but prosperous kingdom on Trill was knitting by the window. She was knitting an outfit for her expected child.

"I cannot wait to tend to a baby." The queen said.

As the queen continued to knit, she pricked her finger, and a drop of red blood fell on a small black banister she was sitting near that was studded with sapphires. She liked how it looked together.

"How lovely my child would be if she had eyes like sapphires, with ebony-black hair… And blood-red lips."

Shortly after this wish, her daughter was born, but the queen used a good deal too much of her strength to bring the child into the world, so she only had enough strength to see that she was exactly how she dreamed she'd look and she named her Ezri. Shortly afterwards, the king died as well, and Ezri was raised by her father's second wife, now the Queen.

Ezri was lovely and full of life and laughter and very in tune with her emotions. Her step-mother Sylvia, however, feared that one day, Ezri's beauty would surpass her own. Because of this, she usually dressed Ezri in rags except for very special occasions where she couldn't afford to without appearing weak to her allies. Despite this, Ezri still enjoyed life and dreamed of the day she'd find the man she would love.

Every day, Sylvia went to a magic mirror she'd bought after her husband's death and asked, "Mirror, Mirror on the wall, who is the fairest of all?" And as long as the mirror replied that she was the fairest, Ezri would live for another day, safe from her step-mother's jealousy…

()()()()()

Sylvia walked over to the mirror. It had been ten years since her husband's death when she ascended to the throne, and she enjoyed it immensely. It was time for her daily check to make sure she was still on top of the beauty game. She could tell sixteen years ago when she first met Carol that she could not afford to let her subjects decide they liked Carol better than her. They might overthrow her… Or worse, take her off their money!

She arrived at the mirror and raised her hands as she recited the incantation.

"Slave of the magic mirror, come from the farthest space." Sylvia recited as she crossed her arms. "Through wind and darkness, I summon thee. Speak! Let me see thy face."

In a burst of flames, a face appeared. A rotund face with long hair and an enormous beard. The face's eyes stared blankly at her.

"What wouldst thou know, my queen?" The face asked in his usual monotone voice.

"Mirror, mirror on the wall," Sylvia recited. "Who is the fairest of them all?"

"Famed is thy beauty, majesty." The face responded as his eyes widened slightly. "But hold… A lovely maid I see. Rags cannot hide her gentle grace. Alas, she is more fair than thee."

"Alas for _her_!" Sylvia spat out as her eyes glowed purple. "What's her name?!"

"Lips red as the rose." The face responded calmly. "Hair black as and eyes blue as sapphires."

"Ezri!" Sylvia said through her teeth as her eyes glowed ever brighter.

()()()()()

Ezri was washing the stairs of the palace as she hummed to herself. She was almost done, and she was happy for her good life. True she had to work every day, but it had helped keep her strong, and she knew that when she got married, she'd be able to have a family again. She had missed that part of her life when she had a father _and_ a mother. She had made friends with all the other ambassadors that lived on the planet.

She finished the stairs and sighed contentedly as she picked up the pail and prepared to put it back in the well as several doves watched her. She put the pail in and looked at them.

"Wanna hear a secret?" Ezri asked.

The doves nodded. Ezri had a way with animals. They were her closest friends here.

"Promise not to tell?" Ezri asked again, and the doves shook their heads.

" _We are standing by a wishing well._ "

Ezri then pointed at the hole in the well.

 _Make a wish into the well,_

 _That's all you have to do._

 _And if you hear it echoing,_

 _Your wish will soon come true._

Ezri then put her head near the well.

 _I'm wishing… (I'm wishing…)_

 _For the one I love,_

 _To find me… (To find me…)_

 _Today. (Today.)_

 _I'm hoping… (I'm hoping…)_

 _And I'm dreaming of,_

 _The nice things… (The nice things…)_

 _He'll say. (He'll say.)_

Had Ezri known it, that day, a person from the Federation planet, Earth, was passing by the palace when he heard Ezri singing. His name was Julian, and he had been on a medical conference held by the Trill council. Julian thought it was the nicest, sweetest voice he'd ever heard and hopped over the wall to see who it was and saw a Trill girl, the prettiest one he'd ever seen, and her kind nature, which he could easily see on her face in the way her eyes looked in conjunction with her mouth's movements, only made her more beautiful.

Ezri continued singing as the well echoed back.

 _Ah-ha-ha-ha-ha. (Ah-ha-ha-ha-ha.)_

 _Ah-ha-ha-ha-ha. (Ah-ha-ha-ha-ha.)_

 _Ah-ha-ha-ha-ha. (Ah-ha-ha-ha-ha.)_

 _Ah-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha!_

 _I'm wishing… (I'm wishing…)_

 _For the one I love,_

 _To find me… (To find me…)_

 _Today._

" _Today!_ " Julian sang out as he appeared next to Tinya.

"Oh!" Ezri exclaimed as she jumped back. The boy had caught her by surprise.

"Hello." The boy said. "My name is Julian. I didn't frighten you, did I?"

Ezri ran off as she didn't want someone she'd just met to see her in her work clothes.

"Wait." Julian called out. "Wait please! Don't run away."

Ezri ran into the castle, but Julian called out.

 _Now that I've found you,_

 _Hear what I have to say!_

Ezri then walked out against her first instinct and listened.

 _One song, I have but one song._

 _One song, only for you._

Ezri swooned and tidied herself up as best as she could.

 _One heart, steadily beating._

 _Constant and true!_

Ezri looked down and found herself falling in love with him as he fell in love with her.

 _One love that has possessed me._

 _One love, brimming with truth._

 _One song, my hear keeps singing._

 _Of one love, only for you._

Ezri smiled and came down as she kissed Julian gently on his cheek.

"I'm Ezri." Ezri said. "I hope that I see you again."

"Me too." Julian said. He kissed her hand and went off.

()()()()()

Unknown to either lover, Sylvia watched from a high up window and scowled. Ezri would pay for putting her at number two.

* * *

Well… This idea just came with me, so I went with it. Please tell me what ya think.


	2. With a Smile and a Song

Chapter Two: With a Smile and a Song

Shortly after Ezri met Julian, Sylvia was talking to the Klingon ambassador, Kurn, who had sworn to serve her as part of a pact she made to help the Klingons.

"Take her far into the forests of Bajor." Sylvia said. "Find a nice secluded place where she can pick wild flowers."

"Yes your majesty." Kurn said.

"And there, my faithful friend, you will _kill_ her." Sylvia said with a mad glint in her eyes.

"But your majesty, the little princess-" Kurn argued before Sylvia stood up, and her eyes glowed purple.

"SILENCE!" Sylvia ordered. "You know the penalty if you fail."

The penalty would be that Kurn's wife, Mila, and their family would all be executed, and Kurn would be forced to watch.

"Yes… Your majesty…" Kurn said in a defeated voice.

"And just to make sure that you don't fail, bring back her heart in this." Sylvia pulled out a red box with golden trim. The lock was a golden heart with a golden dagger cutting into it.

()()()()()

A few days later, Kurn took Ezri to Bajor. Ezri was walking through a forest on Earth that she had never been to, and she was excited about all the lovely flowers there. She also hoped that she'd meet Julian there before she had to go back home.

 _One song, I have but one song._

 _One song, only for you._

She hummed the song he sang to her, their song, to herself as she picked as many wild flowers as she could carry. Suddenly, she saw a small blue bird chirping not far off.

"Oh hello there." Ezri said as she turned to the baby bird. "What's the matter?"

The bird chirped fearfully, and Lana recognized it as the fears of a lost child.

"Where are your mother and father? Are you lost?" Ezri asked, and the bird began to cry. "Oh, please don't cry. Come on, cheer up. Won't you smile for me?"

The bird chirped happily.

"That's better." Ezri said encouragingly. "Your mother and father can't be far away. Oh, there they are. Good-bye little one. Good-bye."

The bird flew off to his parents as Ezri smiled.

()()()()()

Kurn meanwhile, pulled out his d'k tahg and held it loosely as he walked to Ezri. Just after Ezri helped the bird find his parents, Kurn raised his d'k tahg as Kurn turned around and screamed. She prepared to defend herself as best she could against the d'k tahg, but she knew that it was no use when Kurn dropped his d'k tahg.

"I can't." Kurn said. "I can't do it. Forgive me, your highness. I beg you."

Kurn fell to his knees and bowed his head.

"I don't understand." Ezri said in a confused voice.

"She's mad." Kurn said. "Jealous of you! She'll stop at nothing!"

"Who?" Ezri asked.

"The queen!" Kurn said.

"The queen?" Ezri said. How could her step-mother do such a terrible thing?

"Run for it, child!" Kurn said. "Run! Go away and hide in the woods! Anywhere, just never come back! Go!" Ezri still stood there nervously. "GO!"

Ezri rushed off into the forest as Kurn picked up his d'k tahg and walked to a nearby wild boar. He'd give the queen something alright.

()()()()()

Ezri ran into the woods, and in her panicked state, every tree seemed to have eyes, and their branches were clawed hands trying to reach out and grab her! She eventually fell down into a pond, and when she got up, she saw two logs that seemed to be alligators and ran out where she was surrounded by frightening trees that starred at her darkly before she screamed and fell crying. It was all over.

()()()()()

As she cried, she realized something, no one was attacking her. She looked up to find that it was still daylight, and the eyes were simply the animals of the forest. She even noticed the squirrels, the dear, and the birds. When a rabbit came up to her, she startled at the creature rubbing its nose next to her face, and they scattered.

"Oh, don't go away." Ezri said as she felt her confidence return. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to frighten you. I was just surprised. I was very frightened, and all because I was afraid of things that weren't really scary. I'm so ashamed over the fuss that I have made. What do you do when things go wrong?"

The birds tweeted.

"Ooh!" Ezri said happily. "You sing a song!"

The birds chirped a yes.

" _Ah-ha-ha, ha, ha._ " Ezri sang, and the baby bird she'd helped before sang along.

 _Ah-ha-ha, ha, ha._

 _Ahhh… Ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha, ha._

The bird tried to follow along again, but he failed to hit Ezri's high notes, but Ezri just chuckled happily.

 _With a smile and a song,_

 _Life is just like a bright sunny day._

 _Your cares fade away._

 _And your heart is young._

 _With a smile and a song,_

 _All the world seems to waken anew,_

 _Rejoices with you._

 _As the sung is sung._

More animals came out to listen to Ezri's singing. A chipmunk came up and rested on Lana's lap.

 _There's no use in grumbling_

 _When raindrops come tumbling._

 _Remember, you're the one_

 _Who can fill the world with sunshine._

She then petted a faun that had come up, and the rabbit who had come up to her before laid his head down on her legs.

 _When you smile and you sing,_

 _Everything is in tune and it's spring_

 _And life flows along,_

 _With a smile and a song._

The animals then all cheered, and Ezri felt that maybe things would not be so bad for her now.

* * *

That was fun.


	3. Whistle While You Work

Chapter Three: Whistle While You Work

"I really feel quite happy now." Ezri said with a smile. "I'm sure I'll get along somehow. Everything's going to be alright… But I do need a place to sleep at night."

She petted the bunny by her leg.

"I can't sleep in the ground like you." Ezri said. She then looked at the squirrels. "Or in a tree like you do, and I'm sure I could never fit in a bird's nest." Then she got a brilliant idea! "Maybe you know where I could stay in these woods!"

The birds and other animals all made their respective ways of saying yes.

"You do?!" Ezri said with a smile. She wasn't sure if that would really work. "Will you take me there?"

The birds and dear then led Ezri to a small cabin. When she saw the cabin, she noticed that it looked quite modest.

"Oh it's adorable!" Ezri said in delight. "It looks just like a doll house!"

Ezri then walked up to the house.

"I like it here." Ezri then looked into the window, but she couldn't make out anything inside. "It's dark in there."

Ezri then knocked. Nothing happened. Maybe no one heard her. She knocked again, but there still wasn't an answer.

"Well, I guess there's nothing for it." Ezri said as she tested the door knob and found it unlocked. "Oh."

She went in with the animals.

"Hello?" Ezri called out. No one answered. "I guess no one is being home."

Ezri walked around and figured that she could just stay and wait for the people to come home. She noticed several toys on the ground and thought, _Maybe I could be their nanny and take care of their child… Or children._

Ezri then squealed with delight as she saw a small chair. She looked down at it as the animals came in too.

"What a cute little chair!" Ezri said. She then noticed that there were several more. "Wait a moment, there are seven little chairs. There must be seven little children here." She then looked at a very messy table with cups, plates, and all manner of left over garbage on the table. "And from the look of the table seven untidy little children."

She walked over and saw what was on there.

"Toys at the table." Ezri said as she picked up a tricorder small enough for a ten-year-old to play with. She then saw a sock. "A sock too?!" Ezri then opened a pot and took out, "A shoe?"

Ezri whistled with the birds. She then walked to the fire place.

"Covered in dust, of course." Ezri blew, and several chipmunks sneezed. "And cobwebs everywhere. A pile of dirty dishes in the sink, and just look at that broom!"

The broom laid there as if it hadn't ever been used.

"I doubt they've ever swept this room." Ezri said. "You'd think their mother would-" Then she stopped as she realized something. "Maybe they don't have a mother. Then they'd be orphans. Oh, those poor little children. Maybe we should clean the house, and surprise them when they come back from… Whatever they're doing… Then maybe they will let me stay."

Ezri then looked around, and her new friends did as well.

"Alright, squirrels, you wash the dishes." Ezri said. "And rabbits, tidy up the room. Deer, clean the fireplace, and I'll use the broom."

The birds then whistled to commence the large project Lana had suggested.

 _Just whistle while you work._

 _And cheerfully together we can tidy up this place._

 _So hum a merry tune._

 _It won't take long when there's a song to help us set the pace._

The singing actually did keep everyone lively enough to keep on track. Ezri was easily sweeping the room and standing on chairs to deal with the cobwebs. The squirrels used rags and their own tails to wash the dishes, and the dear used their tails to dust the fireplace, and the stags used their antlers to help the smaller animals make Starfire's job easier by dusting the walls and everywhere they could reach.

 _And as you sweep the room_

 _Imagine that the broom is someone that you love_

 _And soon you'll find you're dancing to the tune._

"Oh, no, no." Ezri said as one of the fauns was trying to clean a plate by licking it. "Those go in the tub."

Ezri then handed a plate to the squirrel, and he put it there.

"Why don't you help your parents?" Ezri asked.

The dear smiled and cleaned the fire place with his mother.

As a rabbit was pushing dirt under the rug, Ezri caught them.

"Nah-uh." Ezri said kindly but firmly. "Pushing dirt under a rug isn't cleaning."

The rabbits then moved the rub and pushed the dirt out of the house.

"Yes, that's much better." Ezri said with a smile as she scratched behind the rabbit's ear.

Ezri and a few of the squirrels then got to work cleaning a large organ. She figured she could learn to play it for the children. The birds then brought in flowers to liven up the room and used a pouch they'd brought to water the flowers.

With the house cleaned up, everyone then helped put away the clothes and the toys. As the toys were put away, the stag helped Lana take the clothes she couldn't carry, which wasn't very much, and she and several raccoons began washing the clothes, and Ezri hung them to dry. She noticed that they were very odd clothes. All of them were Starfleet uniforms designed for ten-year-olds. She shrugged and guessed that they had a range of different tastes in clothing.

 _So whistle while you work._

After finishing cleaning, Ezri relaxed by the wall and found a book entitled, _The Magician's Nephew_ by CS Lewis.

* * *

Is there anything Disney animals can't do?


	4. Heigh-Ho

Chapter 4: Heigh-Ho

In a cave deep in the mountains, seven children were working to get some precious stones to be able to survive in the world. Inspired by Starfleet, they dressed in miniature Starfleet outfits.

The leaders were ten-year-old children named Leonard "Bones" McCoy, Spock, Nyota Uhura, and James Tiberius Kirk. Right under them was a nine-year-old known as Hikaru Sulu and an eight-year-old named Carol Marcus. At the bottom of the chain of command was a seven-year-old named Pavel Chekov. To make things go by quicker, and to stop Dick from complaining, they sang a work song, which only Bones objected to.

 _We dig-dig-dig-dig-dig-dig-dig_

 _In our mine the whole day through._

 _To dig-dig-dig-dig-dig-dig-dig_

 _Is what we have to do._

" _It's not a trick._ " Spock said as he used his Vulcan strength to easily cut through the walls. " _You get rich quick._ "

" _If you dig-dig-dig with a shovel or a pick._ " Bones said as he dug out a diamond the size of Albert Einstein's brain.

" _In a mine._ " Hikaru said as his echo repeated, " _In a mine._ "

" _In a mine!_ " Nyota repeated as she liked the way the echo sounded. " _In a mine!_ "

 _Where a million diamonds…_

 _Shine!_

As they blinked in wonder, Carol was driving a cart while she was reading a book called _The Once and Future King_.

 _We dig-dig-dig-dig-dig-dig-dig_

 _From morning until night._

Carol saw a fly buzzing around and smashed him.

 _We dig-dig-dig-dig-dig-dig-dig_

 _Up everything in sight._

Carol then dropped the diamonds in front of Jim, who used a hammer to see how good the diamonds were. If they weren't good, he'd toss them on the floor.

 _We dig up diamonds by the score._

 _Diamonds rubies sometimes more._

 _And we're not sure what we dig them for._

 _We dig-dig-diggity-dig._

Pavel's job was to sweep up the rejects and throw them in a landfill. As he watched Jim observe a very large diamond, he picked up two of them. A few minutes later, he tugged on Jim's sleeve, and he turned around to see Dick with the diamonds in his eyes. Jim then knocked the diamonds out with a slight thump on the head.

Jim then looked at the clock to see that it was already five in the afternoon.

" _Heigh-ho!_ " Jim called as a way to sound the end of the day.

" _Heigh-ho!_ " Everyone called back to show they heard. They then headed back home.

 _Heigh-ho! Heigh-ho! Heigh-ho!_

They then walked off with about three diamonds each to tide them over for a while.

 _Heigh-ho. Heigh-ho._

 _It's home from work we go._

The rest of the diamonds were then put into a safe as Pavel put the key in his pocket to keep safe until the next day.

 _Heigh-ho. Heigh-ho._

 _Heigh-ho. Heigh-ho._

 _Heigh-ho. Heigh-ho._

 _It's home from work we go._

 _Heigh-ho. Heigh-ho._

 _Heigh-ho. Heigh-ho._

 _Heigh-ho. Heigh-ho._

 _Heigh-ho, hum._

 _Heigh-ho. Heigh-ho._

 _It's home from work we go._

 _Heigh-ho. Heigh-ho._

 _Heigh-ho,_

 _Heigh-ho. Heigh-ho._

 _It's home from work we go._

 _Heigh-ho. Heigh-ho._

 _Heigh-ho,_

 _Heigh-ho. Heigh-ho._

 _It's home from work we go._

 _Heigh-ho, heigh-ho._

 _Heigh-ho, heigh-ho._

 _Heigh-ho._

Yeah, that's what I'm using for the dwarves. Deal with it.

* * *

No flaming if you don't like it by the way.


	5. Meeting Ezri

Chapter 5: Meeting Ezri

As night fell, the animals returned to their home except for a few birds and the family of deer.

"Let's see what's upstairs." Ezri said, and she went up to find a bedroom with seven beds. "Oh what adorable beds, and they have their names carved on them." Ezri then proceeded to read the names. "'Jim' 'Nyota' 'Spock' 'Pavel'" Ezri giggled good-naturedly. "What funny names for children. 'Bones', 'Hikaru', and 'Carol'." Ezri then yawned. "I better hit the hay."

Ezri then laid down across Nyota, Spock, and Pavel's beds as the deer went to sleep on the floor. The birds then put the candle out with their tails and covered Ezri up before flying down stairs.

Suddenly, the deer were awakened by the sounds of people coming, and they returned to the forest for fear of being attacked by the cottage's inhabitants.

()()()()()

The group returned home as Jim led the way with a flashlight.

"Look!" Jim suddenly said as he stopped abruptly and everyone slammed into him. "Our house. The light's lit!"

Everyone then snuck to the side and looked at the house.

"Jiminy Cricket." Pavel said in a low whisper as he looked.

"The door's open." Jim pointed out as light was coming through the doorway.

"Looks like smokes coming from the chimney." Hikaru said.

"Something's in there." Spock remarked.

"You don't think it's someone bad, do you?" Nyota asked.

"Could be anything." Hikaru said.

"Either way, something's up." Bones said. "We better approach it carefully."

"How?" Pavel asked.

"Let's sneak up on it." Nyota said.

"Right." Jim said. "Follow me."

They nervously snuck to the house and went inside. Jim slowly opened the door which appeared to creek louder than it normally did, but they just put that off to nerves. They then tip-toed in as Pavel slammed the door shut.

"SHH!" They all hissed at Pavel.

"SHH!" Pavel hissed at the door.

"We better search every nook and cranny." Jim said.

"Yeah, and we should search everywhere too." Pavel said, which earned him a slap from Bones.

"Ouch!" Pavel exclaimed.

"Guys, be quiet." Bones hissed.

As Jim, Spock, and Carol checked one area of the house, Jim looked down and gasped.

"Look at the floor!" Jim called out in surprise. "It's been swept!"

"Who on Earth would break into a house to sweep a floor?" Carol asked incredulously.

Bones rubbed a finger against one of the chairs at the table and looked.

"The chair's been dusted." He observed.

"The windows are all washed." Nyota stated.

"No cobwebs anywhere." Hikaru stated.

"The whole place is cleaner than an operating room." Jim said in surprise.

"Someone's definitely been in here." Bones said. "We're lucky if we manage to clean the place once a week, and we never get it this clean. There's dirty work a foot."

"The sink's empty." Spock said as he looked inside with Carol. "Guys, someone stole our dishes."

"No they didn't!" Nyota said exasperatedly. "They just cleaned them and put them in the cupboard."

"Yeash, if we end up finding that Courtney Cox lady from Friends, I'm gonna laugh." Carol said.

"Hey, they washed my cup!" Hikaru groaned as he ran his finger around it. "No more sugar!"

"Good." Carol said. "The last thing we need is you all hopped up on sugar again."

Nyota and Pavel approached a bubbling pot.

"Something's cooking in there." Nyota said as she sniffed. "And it smells pretty good."

Nyota made to grab a ladle when Bones grabbed her hand and pulled her away.

"Are you stupid?!" Bones asked. "That could be poison!"

As if on cue, the pot hissed.

"AHH!" Pavel exclaimed.

"Why do I bother?" Bones said.

Jim then drew everyone's attention to the table.

"Look what happened to the table!" Jim said as Jaime picked up some golden rods that were there.

"Hey cool, flowers." Hikaru said. "Look at this Spock, golden rods."

"Oh no!" Spock said as his nose began to get stuffed up. "My nose, I've had hay fever for the last few weeks! You know I can't stand it, Hikaru! I ca- I coo- I c-"

"HIT THE DECK!" Bones called out. As Pavel, Hikaru, and Carol ducked, Bones, Nyota, and Jim held their fingers to his nose.

"Phew." Spock said. "Thanks guys… AH CHOO!"

The other six were then blown into the wall.

"Sweet Saturn!" Nyota exclaimed.

"A very fine time you picked to sneeze!" Bones whispered angrily at Spock, her best friend.

"I couldn't help it!" Spock whispered back. "When you've gotta, you've gotta… Uh-oh. I've gotta again.

"GRAB HIM!" Bones called out. They pounced on Spock and tied a handkerchief around his nose, which served to muffle his sneeze.

"Thanks." Spock said.

"We've gotta keep quiet." Bones said. "We could all end up messing with whatever's in here if we're not careful."

They then heard an odd sound from upstairs.

"Whatever's in here is up there." Jim said.

"In the bedrooms." Nyota said.

"Uh-oh." Pavel exclaimed.

"Someone's gotta go up and chase whatever's up there down." Jim said.

They all nodded their heads, and six of them looked at Pavel as he looked behind him before remembering that there were only seven of them.

"Me?" Pavel asked in a squeaky whisper.

Pavel tried to creep off before he was grabbed by Bones and Spock. They then pulled him in front of Jim as he held up a flash light that he'd turned on and was shaking as bad as Pavel.

"Here." Jim said nervously. "Take it. Don't be nervous."

Jim then mustered his own courage and put the flash light in Pavel's hand and shoved him up the stairs. At the landed outside of the bedrooms, Pavel turned around to look at the others several steps below him.

"Don't be afraid." Jim said. "We're right behind you."

"Yeah." They all said. "Right behind you."

"Mm." Pavel said nervously as he walked up and entered the bed room. In the light of the flash light, Pavel saw something groan sleepily as it stretched underneath several sheets.

"AHHHHH!" Pavel called out and ran down the stairs.

"Here it comes!" Bones said as he got an attack ready before they were all bowled over by something, and they ran straight out of the door. Pavel then tried to follow, but the door wouldn't open.

"It's trying to get out!" Jim screamed!

"Don't let it out!" Bones said calmly.

"Hold it shut!" Spock added.

This added greatly to Pavel's fears that the creature and woken up. He didn't dare look behind him and tried harder to open the door until the door knob broke off, and Pavel fell into several pots and pans that landed all over him. Now sure that the creature had woken up, he ran for his life right out the door. This was the scariest night of his life!

()()()()()

Outside the cottage, everyone waited in the trees for the creature, whatever it was, to attack. They pounced down on what appeared to be some kind of metal creature and kept attacking until Jim realized something.

"Hold on guys!" Jim shouted. "It's only Pavel."

"Yeah, it's only-D'oh!" Pavel exclaimed as Bones hit him again with his stick. "What was that for?!"

"Scaring me for no good reason!" Bones retorted.

"Did you see it?" Spock asked?

"Yeah!" Pavel said panting.

"How big is it?" Nyota asked.

"Huge!"

"What was it?" Bones asked.

"A dragon!" Pavel said as the creature was large enough to be.

"Has it got horns?" Spock asked.

"Yeah!"

"Was it breathing fire?" Jim asked.

"Yeah!" Pavel said.

"Was it drooling?" Hikaru asked.

"Yeah!" Pavel said.

"Stop saying yeah and tell us what it was doing!" Bones shouted.

"It was sleeping." Pavel said.

"A monster's asleep in our beds?!" Jim exclaimed.

"Let's get it while it's sleeping." Bones proposed.

"Good idea." Nyota said.

"Let's go!" Spock proclaimed and they went off.

They made it back to the bedroom and opened the door to see the thing yawning again, and it was covering Spock, Nyota, and Pavel's beds.

"By Surak!" Spock exclaimed.

"Heaven above!" Nyota added.

"What a monster." Spock said.

"No kidding." Hikaru replied. "It's covering three beds."

"Let's get it before it wakes up!" Jim whispered.

"Which end do we get?" Nyota asked, but everyone shushed her.

They then surrounded the creature and prepared to fight when Jim lifted the sheet, and they all stopped.

It wasn't a monster. It was a very lovely Trill girl. With short black hair, and she was in a blue-green outfit.

"Whoa!" Jim exclaimed.

"What is it?" Nyota asked.

"It's a girl." Jim said.

"She's really pretty." Spock said.

"She looks like an angel." Hikaru said.

"Angel?" Bones said. "She's a stranger. What would someone like her be doing here?"

"Shh!" Jim said. "You'll wake her up."

"Let her wake up then." Bones said. "She's trespassing."

"Hey, she's moving!" Spock said nervously.

"She's waking up!" Nyota said.

"What do we do?!" Spock asked.

"Hide!" Jim said, and they ducked down as the girl yawned and got up.

()()()()()

"Oh my…" Ezri said with a yawn as she got up. "Just what I needed. I wonder if the children are-"

Ezri then looked down and gasped in pleasant surprise as she saw the children.

"Oh you're so cute." Ezri said like a babysitter. The children then stood up, and she saw that they were in several outfits. Maybe they were play acting. "How are you?" Ezri asked, but none of them answered. "I said 'How are you?'"

"How are we what?" Said a boy dressed in a blue outfit.

"Oh you can talk!" Ezri said excitedly. "I'm so glad!"

"Now do not tell me who you are, let me guess." Ezri said. "Now you…" She said as she looked at a boy in a gold version of the outfit. "You're… Jim."

"Oh, yes." Jim said with a nervous smile.

Ezri then looked at an Asian boy who appeared to be in the same outfit as Jim.

"You are Hikaru." Ezri said.

"Y-yeah." Hikaru said as he blushed.

"And you…" Ezri said as she looked at a girl with blond hair and a blue dress. "You're… Carol?"

"How'd you guess?" Carol asked.

"I just kinda took a stab at it." Ezri said. She then turned to a Vulcan boy also in blue. "And you're Spock."

"Yes." Spock said as he raised his eyebrow.

"And you're…" Ezri said as she turned to a black girl in a red dress.

"Nyota, ma'am." Nyota said. "And this is Pavel."

"Hi." Pavel said nervously.

"Don't worry, he's shy around strangers." Nyota explained.

"Oh, that is too bad." Ezri said as she smiled, and Pavel smiled nervously as well. She then turned to the last boy. He folded her arms moodily.

"Oh…" Ezri said deepening her voice to try and get the girl to smile. "You must be Bones."

"She's good at this." Jim said.

"We know who we are." Bones said shortly. "What we don't know is who _you_ are and what _you're_ doing here."

"Oh how silly of me." Ezri said as she blushed. "I am Ezri Dax."

"Ezri?!" Everyone asked. "The princess?!"

"Yeah." Ezri said with a smile.

"Well your highness." Jim said respectively. "We're honored hosts. We're… Uh…"

"Mad as hornets!" Bones interrupted.

"Mad as hornets!" Jim said before shaking his head.

"Wait, no we're not." Jim said. "Ah, what was I saying?!"

"Nothing, just sputtering like an idiot as usual!" Bones said.

"Hey who's sputtering like an idiot?!" Jim asked angrily.

"That's enough you two." Spock said as he rushed between the two.

"I say we tell her to get out." Bones said.

"Please don't send me away." Ezri pleaded. "If you do, she'll kill me."

"Kill you?" Spock asked.

"Who?" Jim asked.

"My step-mother Queen Sylvia." Ezri stated.

"Sylvia?!" Everyone asked.

"She's wicked!" Hikaru said.

"She's bad!" Nyota agreed.

"She's fierce!" Spock added.

"She's a vain and power-hungry witch." Bones said calmly. "I'm warning all of you. If Sylvia finds out she's here on this planet, she'll tear the whole place apart just because of Ezri being here."

"But she doesn't even know where I am." Ezri said.

"Oh yeah?" Bones asked. "Well from all the stories I've heard, she has enough black magic to easily figure out where someone is, and it doesn't take magic to make someone invisible. For all we know she's in this room right now."

"Oh my god!" Pavel said before he looked down Nyota's shirt to look for Sylvia, and Nyota punched him in the face.

"Oh she'd never find me here." Ezri said cheerfully. "And if you let me stay, I'll do the cleaning for you. I can wash, sow, sweep, cook-"

"COOK?!" Everyone said at the same time as they were tired of Bones and Spock buying them cereal from some town.

"Can you make apple dumplings?" Jim asked.

"Yes." Ezri said. "And plum pudding, and goose berry pie-"

"GOOSE BERRY PIE?!" Everyone called out. "Hooray! She stays!"

Bones rubbed his temples. He didn't think any good would come out of this.

* * *

Well Bones' trusting, isn't he?


	6. Washing Up Before Supper

Chapter 6: Washing Up Before Supper

All the talk about cooking reminded Ezri about the pot she'd put on the stove. She flew down and opened it up as she took a sip of what she was making.

The seven children then walked out and sniffed.

"SOUP!" They called out and rushed down. They then sat down and fought over the bread, except Pavel, who was fighting to try and get a seat.

"Uh-uh-uh." Ezri said, before anyone could have a bite. "Wait a moment. Supper's not quite ready yet, so you'll have just enough time to wash."

"Wash?" Everyone asked. They'd only washed about once a week as that seemed enough.

"I knew there was a catch." Bones muttered.

"Why do we have to wash?" Hikaru asked the gang in low voices, so Starfire wouldn't hear.

"We're not going anywhere." Nyota said.

"It's not New Year or Christmas." Jim agreed.

"Oh, have you washed already?" Ezri asked.

"Uh… Yes." Jim said.

"Okay, when?" Ezri asked with her hands on her hips.

"When?" Jim asked. "When? Um… Last week, no month, no I mean… Recently."

"Yes." They all said. "Recently."

"Oh, recently." Ezri said with a coy smile. "Then let me see your hands."

They all gulped and held their hands behind their backs.

"Let me see your hands." Ezri said firmly as if she was their mother.

Jim sighed and removed his gloves to show fairly dirty hands.

"Why Jim." Ezri said. "I'm surprised at you."

"Ah… Well…" Jim said nervously.

"Come on, let's see them." Ezri said, and Hikaru showed fairly dirty hands.

"Oh Hikaru." Ezri sighed. "And you, Spock?"

Spock then showed his hands to be among the dirtiest ones so far.

"Tch, tch, tch." Ezri said.

Before she got to her, Nyota rubbed her hands against her pants and showed them to her, sure that it would work.

"It's worse than I thought." Ezri said as she looked at Nyota's _extra_ dirty hands.

Pavel eagerly showed her his hands, and they were, maybe the cleanest, but still very dirty.

Carol then showed her hands, and for someone who spent most of their day pulling a cart, it was hard to believe how dirty they'd gotten.

"How shocking!" Ezri exclaimed before Carol looked down and hid her hands behind her back. "This'll never do. Now you kids go straight outside and wash, or you will not get a bite to eat."

"Let's go." Jim said dejectedly.

Everyone except Bones left, with Pavel slamming into wall because he was looking more at Ezri.

"Well," Ezri asked. "Aren't you going to wash?"

Bones just turned his head away. Who did she think she was, his mother? She was only a few years older than him.

"What's the matter, cat got your tongue?" Ezri asked with a smile, and Bones just walked out to get away from her for a few minutes.

He then ended up slamming her face into a door.

"Oh, did you hurt yourself?" Ezri asked, but Bones just kept walking until he was out of the house. "Women!" He muttered.

()()()()()

"Okay guys, courage." Jim said. "Don't be nervous."

"Are we really gonna do this?" Hikaru asked.

"Well, it'll please Ezri." Jim said.

"I'm sure she has our best interests at heart." Nyota said.

"Me too." Everyone else agreed.

"I'm telling you guys," Bones said. "Give that girl an inch, and she'll walk all over you."

"Ah, don't listen to that sour puss." Jim said dismissively. "Come on, guys."

"How hard should we scrub?" Spock asked.

"Will our fingers shrink?" Carol asked with a yawn.

"Should we get in the tub?" Pavel asked.

"Should we wash where it doesn't show?" Hikaru asked.

"Now don't get excited, here we go." Jim explained.

 _Step up to the tub._

 _It's not a disgrace._

 _Just pull up your sleeves,_

 _And get 'em in place._

 _Then scoop up the water,_

 _And rub it on your face,_

 _And go, blurb, blurb, blurb!_

Jim went first to demonstrate, and everyone else did as she did.

 _Pick up the soap,_

 _Now don't try to bluff._

 _Work up a lather,_

 _And when you get enough,_

 _Get a handful of water._

 _You snout and you snout,_

 _And so, blurb, blurb, blurb._

 _Get doused and soused._

 _Rub and scrub._

 _Splutter and splash all over the tub._

 _You may be cold and wet when you're done,_

 _But you've gotta admit, it's gonna be fun._

A fly came around Carol and she tricked it into going onto the soap where it ended up looking like Santa clause because of the suds.

 _So splash with all your might._

 _It's not any trick._

 _As soon as you're through,_

 _You'll feel mighty slick._

" _You bunch of nanny goats make me sick going, blurb, blurb, blurb!"_ Bones stated.

They then washed up their hair after washing their hands and faces as they figured they should do it right, but they'd save a proper bath for tomorrow evening.

"Next thing you know, she'll be having us dress up in sailor outfits or pink dresses, as the case may be, and squirt us all with that perfume stuff." Bones said.

"I don't mind wearing pink." Carol said.

"Oh don't listen to Bones." Nyota said. "He's just being a big grump."

Pavel then spat out all the water he'd accidentally swallowed.

"A nice group of water-lilies you guys turned out to be." Bones said with a smirk as Jim looked up. "I'd like to see anybody make me wash if I didn't wanna."

Jim then smiled mischievously as he whispered to the others. They all smiled and walked up to Bones as they whistled.

"GET HIM!" Jim shouted out, and they all held Bones up as Spock, Nyota, Hikaru, and Jim held his limbs, so he couldn't get away.

"Hey let me go!" Bones called out.

"Pavel, set the soap." Jim said.

"Okay!" Pavel said as he ran off. He grabbed the soap and was about to bring it when it slipped out of his hand, and he tried to catch it before it knocked him in the head. He then tried to pounce on it, but it just slipped and went into his mouth. "Ё моё!" Pavel called out. "And I didn't even say anything bad!"

He then hiccupped as several soap bubbles popped up.

Meanwhile, everyone else was giving Bones a nice hands and face washing.

 _Now scrub good and hard._

 _It can't be denied,_

 _That he'll look might cool,_

 _As soon as he's dried._

 _With a scrap and a howl,_

 _And a blurb, blurb, blurb!_

Bones was then let out as everyone laughed.

"He smells like a petunia." Spock said with a laugh that was shared with everyone else.

"You sure look cute, Bones!" Nyota teased.

"Oh, you're all gonna pay for this!" Bones shouted.

"Supper!" Ezri called out from the house.

"Supper!" They all called out and ran off, leaving Bones woozy by the tub.

"Eh." Bones said after a while and walked in.

()()()()()

Sylvia walked back to the mirror that very night as Kurn gave her the box with her heart in it.

"Oh mirror, mirror, on the wall, who _now_ is the fairest one of all?" Sylvia asked with a smug smile.

"Far off on the planet Earth, beyond the Seventh Fall, in the cottage of the seven kids dwells Ezri Dax. The fairest one of all." The face said.

"Ezri's dead in a forest." Sylvia said with a smirk. "Kurn had brought me prove." Sylvia opened the box and showed it to the mirror. "Behold, her heart."

"Ezri still lives, the fairest in the land." The face insisted. "It's the heart of a pig you hold in your hands."

"The heart of a pig?!" Sylvia shouted as she threw the box down. "That fool tricked me!"

Sylvia then walked down a secret flight of stairs to her lab as her servant from Earth, Korob waited.

"Whoa, who spit in your caviar?" Korob asked.

"Shut up!" Sylvia said. "That sentimental fool gave me the heart of a pig instead of Ezri's! Looks like if I want someone killed around here, I'll have to do it myself! I'll go to the brats' cottage in such a perfect disguise that no one will ever suspect it's me."

"How perfect?" Korob asked.

"A potion." Sylvia said as she took a book labeled _Disguises_. "A potion to turn my beauty into a grimace. To change my queenly array into a peddler's cloak."

Sylvia found a perfect little recipe. It also had a 72 hour limit, which would give her time to make a perfect way to kill Ezri, and she'd just turn back to her beautiful self afterwards.

"Mummy dust, to make me old." Sylvia said as she grabbed said dust from a drawer. "To shroud my clothes, the black of night."

Sylvia put in the mummy dust and added a pitch black liquid that easily became the dominant color.

"To age my voice, an old hag's cackle." Sylvia said as she turned on a burner underneath a phial that held a red liquid. After it had been turned on, a bit of the red liquid shot up and laughed like an old crone and entered the goblet Sylvia had put the potion into. This turned the potion red.

"To whiten my hair, a scream of fright!" Sylvia turned the knob on a faucet, and a white substance poured out as a scream echoed throughout the chamber, and the potion was now a venomous green.

"A blast of wind to fan my age!" As Sylvia held the goblet to the window and wind suddenly blew through it, and over the goblet. "And a thunderbolt to mix it well!"

As if on cue, a thunderbolt sounded as the potion rippled and bubbled.

"Now…" Sylvia said calmly. "Begin thy magic spell."

Sylvia then consumed the concoction and gasped. The room appeared to be spinning, she saw her hair flying around her face and glimpsed it turning white as salt.

"My hands!" Sylvia called out as she looked at her hands and saw them become incredibly thin and claw-like. Her clothes also turned into a black musty cloak, and her very skin turned incredibly pale.

Sylvia sighed, hoping for the seventy-two hours to pass quickly and heard her own sigh.

"My voice." She croaked. Her voice had become high and raspy. "My voice…"

Sylvia laughed. The potion had worked. She looked into a mirror and saw an old hag with bulging green eyes and a long hook nose with a large wart on it.

"Yes!" Sylvia called out. "A perfect disguise!"

Sylvia turned to Korob who backed into a wall.

"HOLY CAP!" Korob called out.

"And now…" Sylvia said as she pulled out a book on death potions. "A special sort of death for one so fair."

"AH!" She called out very soon. "A poisoned apple. Laced with the draught of the sleeping death."

"Huh?" Korob asked.

"'One taste of the poisoned apple, and the victim's eyes will close forever in the sleeping death…'" Sylvia said as she looked up and smirked wickedly. The Wicked Witch of the West had nothing on her.


	7. Someday My Prince Will Come

Chapter Seven: Someday My Prince Will Come

That night, after dinner, which even Bones had to admit was delicious, the kids showed Ezri what they did after coming home from mines, have fun. They each played an instrument they did best with and simply sung nonsense, with Bones playing the organ that Ezri saw earlier.

Nyota then walked up and smiled.

" _I like to dance and tap my feat, but they won't keep in rhythm_." She sang. " _You see I washed them both today, and can't do a thing with them._ "

Everyone then chuckled at the joke and sang out,

 _Oh hum,da-doo-lee-dum!_

 _The words don't mean a thing!_

 _Isn't this a silly song for anyone to sing?_

Pavel then used several pots and pans as drums and did a nice trick where he pounded on the drums before hitting a cymbal with a twirl of the stick. Hikaru then stood up.

"I…" He began. "Uh…"

Bones then blew a loud note, and that snapped Hikaru to the alert.

" _I chased a pole cat up a tree._ " Hikaru said. " _Way out upon a limb, and when he got the best of me, I got the worst of him._ "

 _Oh hum, da-doo-lee-dum!_

 _The words don't mean a thing!_

 _Isn't this a silly song for anyone to sing?_

As the music continued, Carol was pestered by that fly again.

"Hey, go away!" She said.

The fly then bothered Pavel who ended up quickening the beat in his effort to get the fly. He only ended up panting as the fly landed on Carol's nose. She then made to swat it as Pavel gave her a cymbal, but she only succeeded in giving herself a big headache.

"Why you…" Carol said angrily, and Pavel ended up with a very bad wedgie.

Ezri then danced with each of the kids, except Bones in turn.

Pavel then got on top of Spock with a long cloak.

"Hey watch it!" Spock said. "Don't tickle my nose!"

Pavel made sure to keep his feat still as he put the cloak over the two, with Pavel as the arms and legs and Spock as the legs. They then walked up to Ezri, and she danced around a little, with Pavel only nearly falling off once before he was pulled back up by Spock.

The dance went on and everyone had a great time until they heard a sneeze building up from underneath Pavel's feat.

"Uh-oh." Pavel said.

"Duck and cover!" Bones called out, and everyone hid behind the organ.

"Mommy." Pavel squeaked as Spock sneezed, and Pavel flew up into the ceiling and dropped down once Spock brought over some couch cushions to break his fall.

Everyone laughed, and Ezri sat down.

"That was fun." Ezri said with a smile.

"Now it's your turn to do something." Nyota said.

"What should I do?" Ezri asked.

"Tell us a story." Carol said.

"Yes, tell us a story!" The others called out.

"A true story!" Hikaru said.

"A love story!" Nyota said.

"Well…" Ezri said before she remembered the day she met Robin. "Once there was a princess."

"Was the princess you?" James asked.

"And she fell in love." Ezri said with a nod.

"Was it hard to do?" Spock asked.

"It was very easy." Ezri said with a laugh. "Anyone could see that the prince was charming. The only one for me."

"Was he strong and handsome?" James asked puffing out his chest.

"Was he big and tall?" Spock asked as he flew up.

"There's nobody like him anywhere at all." Ezri said dreamily.

"Did he say he loved you?" Hikaru asked.

"Did he steal a kiss?" Nyota asked.

" _He was so romantic, I could not resist._ " Ezri sang out.

Everyone except Bones then sat down as Bones leaned against a corner.

 _Someday, my prince will come._

 _Someday, we'll meet again._

 _And away to his castle we'll go,_

 _To be happy forever, I know._

"Hmph." Bones muttered. "Mush."

Nyota then managed to pull herself away from the story and pulled Bones over to Ezri.

 _Someday when spring is here,_

 _We'll find our love anew._

Carol was beginning to fall to sleep, just as if she was listening to a lullaby, even though she tried to resist it.

 _And the birds will sing,_

 _And wedding bells will ring,_

 _Someday when my dreams come true…_

Everyone then sighed as a clock began to chime eleven.

"Oh look at the time." Ezri said. "It must be way past all of our bedtimes."

"But I'm not sleepy…" Carol said as she yawned.

"Oh yes you are." Ezri said as she picked Carol up.

"No I'm not." Carol said as she made another yawn.

"Now, all of you, go to your room." Ezri said kindly.

"Wait a second." James said. "We can pretty much sleep anywhere. The princess will sleep in our room tonight."

"But where will you be sleeping?" Ezri asked.

"Oh, we'll be fine down here." James said.

"In a pig's eye." Bones muttered.

"Hey, stop that!" James said. "Don't worry. We'll be comfortable down here. Won't we, guys?"

"Oh yeah." They all said as Pavel grabbed a pillow and prepared to go to sleep on a bench.

"Don't worry about us." Nyota said. "We'll be alright."

"Go right on up." James said.

"Well…" Ezri said. "If you insist. Good night."

"Good night princess." The children said.

"Are you sure you'll be comfortable?" Ezri.

"We'll be fine." Spock said.

"Well, have pleasant dreams then." Ezri said as she went inside.

Once Ezri closed the door, they all headed for the pillow.

Unfortunately, it ended up ripping because everyone had dived at it. Pavel shrugged and went to sleep on the bench.

()()()()()

In the children's room, Ezri was saying her evening prayers.

"Bless Kurn for saving my life, and please help my sister overcome her anger." Ezri prayed. "Bless the seven little children who have been so kind to me, and may all my dreams come true. Also, please help Bones find it in her heart to like me. Amen."

Ezri then went to sleep on the same three beds she had taken her nap in.

()()()()()

"Adults!" Bones said as he tried to get himself comfortable in the pot that Ezri's soup had been before he felt something poking in his back and pulled out the ladle. "This has been a fine kettle of fish."

He tossed the ladle onto the floor and began to go to sleep.

Hikaru was sleeping near a drawer. Nyota was sleeping on top of the drawer. James was sleeping in the sink, getting a small drop of water in her mouth too. Spock was sleeping on top of Pavel, but he woke up when Pavel was whimpering like a dog he before Spock poked him in the hind leg, and he went back to sleeping peacefully.

Bones went back to sleep as he was used to their snores by now, but the only thing he wasn't used to was someone whimpering, and Carol did just that. She was fretting like a toddler as she squirmed in bed. Bones easily knew what had happened. Carol's stuffed rabbit, Bunny, was upstairs in the bed room. Normally, if Carol didn't have Bunny, Bones or Nyota would go and get it for her, but Nyota was out like a light, and Bones didn't feel like looking for a stuffed rabbit up in the bed room with Ezri there, so he just got out of the pot, walked up to Pavel and took his outer shirt. Bones then rolled Pavel's shirt up and put it in Carol's arms, as she slept contentedly while Carol petted Pavel's shirt.

Finally with some variation of peace and quiet by now, Bones hopped back into the pot and fell asleep.

()()()()()

Meanwhile, the old hag that would be Sylvia for the next few days dipped an apple into a potion she had spent several hours making.

"Dip the apple in the brew." Sylvia chanted. "Let the sleeping death seep through."

She then picked the apple up, and it had turned black with the green potion clinging to it dripped away until it made a skull image.

"Yes!" Sylvia said wickedly. "Under skin, a symbol of what lies within. Now turn red to tempt Ezri and make her hunger and savor."

Sylvia then smirked and looked at the now beautifully red apple in her hand, sort of an opposite of her. Something ugly disguised as something delicious.

Sylvia chuckled and got a mischievous look on her artificially aged face.

"Have a bit, sweetie!" Sylvia said as she shoved the apple into Korob's face.

"BWAH!" Korob said as he backed away.

"Oh, you know it's not for you." Sylvia said as she tickled Korob's chin with her claw like finger. "It's for Ezri. When she breaks the tender skin to taste this apple, her breast will still, her Korob congeal, and I'll be the fairest in the land!"

"As soon as that disguise wears off." Korob said before Sylvia starred him down.

"Wait a minute." Sylvia said as a sudden thought crossed her mind. "There may be an antidote. Nothing can be over-looked!"

Sylvia looked at her book again and found what she was looking for.

"Here it is!" Sylvia said. "'The victim of the sleeping death can be revived only by love's first kiss.' 'Love's first kiss'? Sylvia said with a sneer before closing the book. "No fear of that. Those brats will think she's just dead. She'll end up buried alive!"

She then walked down a secret stairway.

"Sweet heaven, what's that girl's problem?!" Korob asked as the door closed.

()()()()()

Sylvia then made her way to a secret ship as she looked at a long dead captive of the dungeon that appeared to be reaching for water.

"Thirsty?" Sylvia asked the skeleton that was left of the prisoner. "Have a drink!"

Sylvia then kicked the jug, and the skeleton smashed to pieces. She then got onto the ship and rested as she thought about what she would do once Ezri was out of the way. Maybe she'd seduce that little beau Ezri met just to spite her soon to be buried alive step-daughter.

In a few days, Sylvia landed on Earth and saw the ruined husk of the boar Kurn had killed to trick Sylvia. She'd deal with the Klingon and his family after this. She only had about five hours left before the disguise wore off, and she knew Ezri would never _accept_ an apple from _her_.

* * *

Aw… Bones has a heart.

Bones: Shut up!


	8. The Wishing Apple

Chapter Eight: The Wishing Apple

A few days later, the kids left to dig up more diamonds. The last couple of days had been very nice and peaceful. Bones had consented to teaching Ezri how to play the organ, Spock had finally managed to get over his hay fever and regain control over himself, and Carol had become much more open to Ezri.

Today, they all prepared to leave as they needed some more diamonds for money.

"Now don't forget Ezri," Jim had said. "Sylvia's sly and full of witchcraft, so beware of strangers."

"Don't worry." Ezri said with a smile. "I'll be alright."

Ezri then kissed Jim on the head.

"See you tonight, and remember to wash up before dinner." Ezri said.

"Uh… Yes…" Jim gasped with a nervous smile. "Come on, guys."

"I hope you'll be really careful." Hikaru said. "Why if anything happened-"

Ezri then kissed him on the head, and he blushed so much, you'd think he had more blood than he actually did.

"Good-bye." Ezri said cheerfully.

"Ah, gee!" Hikaru said as he walked off.

"That is disgusting." Bones muttered from the back of the line.

"And be sure to watch out." Spock said as he left, and Ezri kissed him. "Thank you."

Pavel later came up and tugged on Ezri's shirt as he puckered up. Ezri smiled kindly, gently bent Pavel's head down, and kissed him. He then left and came back just a few moments later.

"Oh alright." Ezri said with a chuckle as she kissed him on the head. "But that's the last-"

Pavel then ran off like a cheetah and came back as one too, except as a cub.

"Oh, run along." Ezri said with a chuckle, and Pavel went off.

"Bye." Carol said as she was holding _The Magician's Nephew_ in her hand. "Now remember, you promised we could talk about this book when we get home."

"Yes, I remember." Ezri said before kissing Carol on the cheek and she walked off.

Bones pulled up some stray bangs before heading to the door.

Nyota then received a kiss on the cheek and walked off as she helped Carol along.

 _Heigh-ho. Heigh-ho._

 _It's off to work we go._

Bones then coughed to let Ezri know he was there.

"Now I'm warning you." Bones said as he fidgeted around. "Don't let anyone or _anything_ in this house unless you know them like the back of your hand."

"Why Bones," Ezri said with a smile. "You do care."

Ezri then kissed Bones on the forehead, and he walked off before he stopped and smiled a little. It was just like what his mom had done before she passed away. He shook his head and walked off.

()()()()()

Sylvia walked slowly to the cottage as she chuckled to herself. Only an hour left, and Ezri was an easy five minutes' walk away.

"Those little brats won't be at home." Sylvia chuckled evilly. "And she'll be on her own. With a harmless old peddler woman." She chuckled again. "A _harmless_ old peasant woman."

()()()()()

Ezri decided to use this time to make some goose-berry pies for the children as a surprise and began making the last one after putting the other six on the table.

 _Someday my prince will come._

 _Someday we'll meet again._

 _And away to his castle we'll go._

 _To be happy forever I know._

She then placed the top of the pie on the last one and cut off the excess with a small knife. After that, she put the crust she cut off and put it on top of the pie, so that it spelled, "Bones".

 _Someday, when Spring is near,_

 _We'll find our love anew,_

 _And the birds will sing,_

 _And wedding bells will ring._

 _Someday, when my dreams come true…_

Ezri then looked up and gasped as she saw an old woman with a long hooked nose, greasy white hair, and bulging green eyes. Out of her black cloak, Ezri saw two hands that were so skinny that they looked more like claws.

"All alone my dear?" The old woman asked in a high raspy voice that seemed slightly familiar to Ezri.

"Uh…" Ezri said nervously. "Well yes I am."

"What?" The woman said in surprise. "But you're only a girl, you can't be older than sixteen. Aren't either of your parents or any little brothers or sisters around?"

"Well, my parents died when I was still a little girl." Ezri said. "But the children are away for a little while."

"Hmm…" The old woman said. "Making pies?"

"Yes, goose-berry." Ezri said. "They're the children's favorite."

"Then they haven't tried apple pies." Sylvia said with a smile. "They can make any little child's mouth water. Made from nice apples, like these."

The old woman picked up an apple that was so beautifully red that Ezri couldn't help staring at it.

"They look delicious." Ezri said.

"Yes, but wait until you taste it." The old woman said sweetly. "Would you like to try one? Go on… Go on and have a bite."

Before Ezri could grab the apple, the birds began attacking the poor old woman.

"Hey, you leave her alone!" Ezri said as she threw a flare of Pavel's into the air to frighten them off. "You should be ashamed of yourselves for attacking a poor old helpless lady like that!"

The woman made sure the apple was still alright, and Ezri put her arms on her shoulders.

"Are you alright?" Ezri asked.

"Oh, my heart!" The woman said as she clutched her chest. "My poor heart. Get me into the house and give me a drink of water."

"Oh, of course." Ezri said as she helped the old woman inside.

()()()()()

The animals looked into the window and saw Ezri go off to get the old hag some water. They could tell that something wasn't quite right about her, and they saw her look at the apple and then at Ezri, and they knew something terrible would happen if she ate it. They then ran off towards a diamond mine where they knew the children were.

()()()()()

The children arrived at the mine and were about to get to work. They began to push a small track car full of any digging equipment they'd need, and Pavel accidentally shoved Carol inside.

"Ouch!" Carol said.

"Sorry." Pavel said meekly.

Suddenly, several animals arrived and began pulling at their clothes and hair like there was no tomorrow.

"Get out of here!" Bones said as she swatted some birds away.

"Hey, let go!" Pavel shouted as several birds were beginning to pull him away.

"What's going on here?!" Jim shouted as a doe was shoving Jim away from the mine.

"They've gone crazy!" Hikaru called out.

"No kidding." Spock said as he knocked away the birds and squirrels that were pulling on his sleeves and feet, but they came right back.

()()()()()

Ezri had given the lady a drink of water, and she smiled kindly like a grandmother… Or at least how Ezri imagined grandmothers smiled as she never saw one.

"And because you've been so good to dear old Granny," the lady said kindly. "I'll let you in on a secret. This is no ordinary apple. It's a magic wishing apple."

"A wishing apple?" Ezri asked in awe.

"Yes." The lady said. "One bite, and all your dreams come true."

"Really?" Ezri asked as she thought of Julian and how she could finally be with him.

"Yes dearie." The lady said. "Now make a wish and take a bite."

()()()()()

"Hey go away!" Nyota shouted as a dear was holding her in his antlers and shoving her forward. "What's wrong with them?!"

"I don't know, but they're not acting like this for nothing." Bones said as he shoved away several birds that nearly pulled his shirt off.

"Uh-oh." Carol said as she finally managed to get herself out of the car. "What is that mean queen, Sylvia's got Ezri?"

"Sylvia?!" They all called out in alarm. "Ezri!"

"Sylvia will kill her!" Bones called out in alarm. "We've gotta save her!"

"Yeah, we've gotta save her!" Jim shouted.

"She'll kill her!" Spock shouted.

"What do we do?!" Nyota asked.

"We go back to the house and save her!" Bones said, and Spock, Nyota, Carol, and Jim flew off as Bones and Hikaru rode on the stag and the doe while Pavel was forced to use a makeshift skateboard.

()()()()()

"There must be something your heart desires." The lady said. "Maybe someone you love?"

"Well, yes." Ezri said as she blushed.

"I thought so." The lady said with a laugh. "Old Granny knows a young girl's heart. Now take the apple dearie and make your wish."

"I wish…" Ezri began.

"That's it." The lady said. "Go on. Don't be afraid."

()()()()()

Getting to the cottage proved much more difficult than they thought, especially for the people who were flying as their outfits got on low hanging branches, and twice, Pavel nearly fell to his death when he ran into a large gorge, but managed to survive by grabbing a vine and swinging to the other side.

()()()()()

"And that he'll carry me away to his home, and we'll live happily ever after." Ezri said with a smile.

"Excellent wish my dear." Granny said. "Now take a bite."

()()()()()

The children hurried on as fast as they could.

()()()()()

"Don't let the wish grow cold." Sylvia said as all _her_ dreams were about to come true.

Ezri bit into the apple, and she smiled for a minute before staggering and holding her head.

"Oh… I feel strange." Ezri said weakly.

"Her breath will still." Sylvia said with a wicked smile as her fist began to become fuller and darker. "Her blood congeal."

Ezri fell to the ground asleep, but to all but the most observant, dead, and at that moment, the disguise wore off, and Sylvia was her lovely self again.

"NOW I'LL BE FAIREST IN THE LAND!" Sylvia called out with wicked glee.

* * *

Oh dear…


	9. Let the Punishment Fit the Crime

Chapter Nine: Let the Punishment Fit the Crime

Sylvia walked out as a storm quickly started. She was still laughing to herself when she saw seven children in odd outfits coming this way.

"And of course, something has to happen to complicate things." Sylvia said and she flew off to a place where she could have more room to fight and eventually landed at the peak of a mountain.

The children followed after her, and she put her hand by a boulder.

"Let's see how badly I can crush their bones." Sylvia said with a smirk, and she pushed the boulder.

"Look out!" A boy with a blue outfit called out. As the boulder came at them, a Vulcan boy in blue rushed up and smashed the boulder to pieces.

"Oh, you have got to be kidding me!" Sylvia said as her eyes glowed purple. She then flew up as a bolt of lightning broke the ledge she was standing on and illuminated her face. "You know, my ex-husband doesn't believe in spankings, but I'm more of a fan of physical punishments. They really drive the message home."

Sylvia then fired a purple energy bolt from her hand.

"Hide!" The boy in blue called out, and all seven children hid behind a wall.

"Come on out, kiddies." Sylvia said with a smirk. "We're not playing hide-and-seek you know."

()()()()()

Bones gathered everyone around.

"Okay, our only chance to stop her is to surround her." Bones explained. "Spock, you, Nyota, Jim, and Carol fly up, and cover her from behind."

"I believe the rocket boots for high up mining will suffice in the surprise attack, Leonard." Spock said.

"Yeah, yeah." Bones groaned.

"Got it!" Carol said with a nod.

"Hikaru, Pavel, and I attack from the front."

"Nice idea, Bones." Jim said with a smirk.

"Let's go." Nyota said calmly, and they split up as the ground unit ran up and dodged Sylvia's attacks while Hikaru and Bones attacked with proton cannons and arrows respectively. Sylvia defended herself very well when the kids flew up, and Spock tapped her shoulder.

"What?!" Sylvia asked, and Spock punched her in the face.

"How could you?!" Sylvia cried out. "I'm a woman!"

"Oh, I'm sorry." Spock said. "I…"

"Spock, look out!" Bones said as Hikaru tied up Sylvia's hands with a grappling line, and Nyota pulled her crown over her eyes.

"Hey, I can't see!" Sylvia said.

"That's the point." Bones said.

"Wait, I hear something." Spock said as he looked up before his eyes widen. "Move!"

They all dodged as they forgot to grab Sylvia, and she was struck by lightning and fell into a ravine.

"We better see if she's okay." Jim said as they headed down.

()()()()()

Sylvia found herself floating over the kids. She sneered and prepared to attack one of them with a bolt of mystical energy, but nothing happened. She continued after them as they came across a body she couldn't make out.

"Oh…" The girl in red groaned. "No way she survived that."

"Yeah." The boy in blue said. "Let's get home."

"You're not going anywhere!" Sylvia called out as she tried to stand in front them, but they all walked through her. She got confused and walked over to the body, and to her horror, she found her own body, burnt and scared by the lightning and unmistakably dead. Sylvia then realized what had happened. Whether by an instinctive attempt to lash out at the children or some cruel twist of fate chosen long before today, she had been trapped in limbo. For the rest of her days, she'd wander the world as a disembodied spirit, and she screamed. A horrible scream that no one ever heard.

* * *

Yeah… I got the idea from what happened to Darth Tenebrous in Star Wars.


End file.
